Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo's game is spectacular to watch. When you hear people talk about players that you really need to see play in order to appreciate their abilities, they are talking about players like Rondo. Whether he's making one of his dazzling passes or making defenders look foolish on his drives to the hoop, every game he seems to have at least one moment that will leave your jaw hanging.
His recent eye popping triple-double (12 point, 10 rebounds, 22 assists), against the team with the NBA's best record no less, is just another example of his all around dominance. He carved up the Spurs defense from the start, tallying 8 of his assists in the first quarter alone. When the team needed him to score in the final minutes of a close game, Rondo fearlessly drained a couple of mid-range jumpers that defenders dared him to shoot. His team leading 10 rebounds were capped off by the one he swooped in to grab after Manu Ginobili's shot was blocked, sealing the narrow victory for the Celtics. He also added 6 steals, making his impact felt on both ends of the court. This was Rondo's second triple-double of the season, his first being the equally impressive 10 point, 10 rebound, 24 assist gem against the Knicks. His ability to fill up the box score in a variety of ways shows his incredible all around game and value to the team.
While Rondo is capable of contributing in many aspects of the game, the one that stands out the most is his assists. He currently leads the league by a comfortable margin at 14 assists per game (his next closest competitor is Steve Nash at 10.5 per game). If he can sustain his current pace he could challenge John Stockton's NBA record 14.5 assist per game set back in the 1989-90 season. Given some of the games we've already seen from him this year, Scott Skiles record of 30 assists in one game may not be out of reach either.
Give some credit to his teammates. After all, you can't record an assist unless your teammate makes the shot. Luckily for Rondo, his teammates do that quite well. The Celtics rank just outside the top 10 in offensive efficiency, but also rank first in the league in Field Goal Percentage and True Shooting Percentage. They are having a near historical season in terms of 2 point field goal percentage. Some of this can be attributed to a supporting cast of veterans that have always shot for high percentages (the addition of Shaq this season is a big help there since he never shoots more than a few feet away from the basket), but a lot of it has to do with Rondo creating on offense and setting his teammates up for easy looks.
The biggest knock against Rondo in his career has been his shooting. His free throw shooting in particular has been atrocious. For his career he's only hit 62% of his shots from the charity stripe. This season he's been a disaster with only 41%. That's a lot worse than Shaq, and easily the worst in the league for point guards. The impact is lessened due to the fact that he averages less than 2 attempts per game, but if he had more confidence in his free throw shooting then he'd be more inclined to drive to the basket and draw contact for a foul. Often times he won't do that because he doesn't want to get fouled. He's capable of making the shot, so his issues are mostly mental. He'll have to overcome them in order to take his game to another level.
Some signs of improved shooting have already been seen this season in his mid-range Field Goal Percentage. Defenders have often backed off of Rondo to prevent him from driving to the basket and help take away passing lanes because he's not considered a threat from the perimeter. This season he's starting to make them pay by increasing his Field Goal Percentage on shots from the 16-23 foot range. He's shooting over 44% from that range this season, up from only 33 percent last season. His teammates and coaches have seen him hit those shots in practice for a while now, but he's starting to transfer that confidence into game situations. Rondo may never be known as a deadly marksman, but if he can continue to build on his improving range with more consistency then the expansion of his arsenal will make him nearly unstoppable.
Rondo shows many comparisons to a young Jason Kidd. In his prime, Kidd was a nightly threat for a triple-double, much like Rondo. They both rebound the ball extremely well for a point guard and can score just enough to compliment their lofty assist totals. Early in his career, Kidd piled up assists in bunches, but lacked the shooting touch to make him a consistent scorer. As he got older he eventually developed an outside shot, to where he has now become a threat from three point range. If Rondo's career follows a similar path then he may eventually see similar improvement with this shot. Perhaps he won't develop into a three point shooter, but a consistent mid-range shot is all he needs.
So where does Rondo fit in alongside the other elite point guards in the game? As we've already covered, his comfortable lead in the assists category puts him near the top as far as distributors go. He's also a very tough defender, trailing only Chris Paul for the league lead in steals. However, he doesn't score as much as some of the other top players at the position. Chris Paul has to be considered at the top of the list. He leads all players in the league in Player Efficiency Rating with a PER of 27.09, with Steve Nash (24.0) and Deron Williams trailing not far behind (23.63). Rondo is hurt in many of the advanced metric statistics due to his poor outside and free throw shooting as well as his usage rate, which is lower than other elite point guards. It doesn't help that the Celtics play at one of the league's slowest pace and take the least amount of shots as any team in the league, in part due to a high number of turnovers and a lack of offensive rebounds (the Celtics gameplan is to emphasize getting back on defense to prevent transition baskets rather than crash the boards, limiting offensive rebound opportunities). In a more up-tempo system Rondo's stats might be off the charts, particularly if he continues to improve his shooting. This has to be accounted for when comparing him to other players in other systems.
Rondo's shooting woes are what keep him outside of the top tier of point guards behind Paul and Williams. Then there are the older veterans like Nash and Kidd that continue to defy the odds of aging by playing at a high level, but are certain to decline in the next couple of years. The NBA is flush with an embarrassment of riches at the point guard position. Rondo fits at the top of the list of the next generation of up and coming elite point guards, which also includes stars like Derrick Rose, Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker and John Wall. The NBA may have more depth at the position then we've ever seen before.
Rondo's game is different than that of many of the other top players at the position, but that doesn't make it less effective. It's hard to compare his role with the team with other players, considering most other point guards aren't playing with 4 future Hall of Famers around them. In the not too distant future the era of the Big Three in Boston will come to an end and the torch will officially be passed on to Rondo. We've already seen signs of this transition already happening, but once the old veterans retire to their rocking chairs the team will be re-built around Rondo. It will become his team. By then he'll be ready to take that next step in his career to join the top of the list of elite point guards in the league. Rajon is great, and his future looks great too.
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